Beliefa scatological de rive Yolande Daniels
the stud io
Devina Agus-Sudjito Kristen Burton Sarah Hoskins Jeffrey Jordan Tarin Kim Shih-hao Kuo Brett McMullen Zachary Michels Gregory Pinte1路 Aaron J. Rankin Keiko Yasuda
Theory is social practice. It my be used to exclude in hierarchical structures which segregate or/and it may be used to speculate as part of an engaged political practice (that is a practice which is liberatory fo1- someone other than the theorist) or/and it may be speculation for its own sake (I i beratory for the theorist alone). The segl-egation of theory and practice is one of many neat bureaucratic and mercantile boundaries. The theorist is a practitioner. The phrase theoretical practice in the context of architecture is an oxymoron . Architecture has been defined historically as a speculative and theoretical art in contrast to the practice or skill of building. Practice is theoretica l when it ceases to be purely reflective of cultural norms and seeks through questioning to advance and build upon processes of discovery.
This scatological derive drifts through the analysis or processes of decomposition and assimilation of the valued and the va ueless. Value may be added or subtracted; it is an attribute. Value is not 1nherent in the status of objects. "Does the angle between two walls have a happy ending?" J. G. Ballard. "To really appreciate architecture, you may even need to commit a murder." Bernard Tschumi. These two quotes have come to meaning for me over a space of ten years as a student, as an instructor, as a practitioner of architectu l-e , yet my connection between them has been made specifically within the context of the Body IAp pa1路atusjSystem studio.